Childhood Obesity

With the national push to end childhood obesity— and campaigns targeted at "The Biggest Generation" — kids today have a heavy burden to bear. And Washington County youths are feeling the burden. The Herald-Mail is launching a monthly series on childhood obesity and local efforts to combat what public health officials are calling an epidemic. Childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past 30 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It's elementary. Healthy lifestyle choices should begin in childhood. But parents are busy. Fast food is cheap. And technology helps keep children sedentary. As a result, one out of three children in the United States is overweight or obese, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. They are at risk for developing serious health problems, such as Type 2 diabetes, that will carry over into adulthood. That's why Becki Weir believes it's important to promote healthy lifestyle choices as early as possible.

Editor's note: This continues our occasional feature on fighting childhood obesity. Maybe your mom wasn't June Cleaver, sporting an apron and pearls. And Dad didn't wear a tie. But the chances are pretty good that you sat down almost every night to a family meal. Food appeared hot out of the oven and everyone was given a chore - setting the table, serving, washing the dishes. There also was proper etiquette and shared conversation. Today, for many people, such a scene is a quaint luxury.

andrear@herald-mail.com Families must work together to combat childhood obesity - a growing epidemic that experts boil down to two primary factors: Unhealthy eating habits and lack of exercise. "We're looking down the wrong end of a rifle on this thing. This entire country has got to recognize that we've got a serious problem facing us," says clinical psychologist Gerard Musante, founder of the residential weight loss facility Structure House in North Carolina. Musante, who pioneered the behavioral change approach to weight loss while on the faculty of Duke University Medical Center, recently testified at a Senate hearing about the problem of obesity in America.

Much has been written and said over the past several years about childhood obesity. Our kids are overweight, out of shape and headed toward a lifetime of obesity and other health concerns, according to dozens of studies and reports authored by local and national health groups and organizations. One study published this winter even went as far as blaming TV for contributing to the increasing roundness of our nation's youth. The study from researchers at the University of Michigan Health System found that a 3-year-old exposed to two hours of TV a day was nearly three times more likely to be overweight than a child who watched fewer than two hours.

Penn State Mont Alto's annual Pediatric and Community Health Fair is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 14. The fair features horses, parachutes, puppet shows, ambulances, fire trucks, and a fly-in by the Life Lion helicopter. Participants can also shake hands and take a picture with the Penn State Nittany Lion. The fair provides information on several topics including childhood obesity, anger management, bullying and abuse, nutrition, and more. Attendees will discover community health resources available to them and will be eligible to win raffle prizes.

The fat is out of the fire, so to speak, for at least one more school year. After opposition to a plan to weigh schoolchildren periodically as part of an effort to reduce - or keep track of - childhood obesity - Maryland state lawmakers instead opted for another year of study. Translation: It's an election year, so why upset anyone? We agree that this is one more burden that would be laid on the school system. But if we were talking about an epidemic of lead poisoning as opposed to obesity, lawmakers would be rushing to co-sponsor this bill.

Taylor Clemm had everything she needed for her workout: black yoga pants, a Dora the Explorer sippy cup and the energy that only a toddler can offer. The 22-month-old participates weekly as part of Beasts, a 45-minute exercise class for 1- and 2-year-olds offered at The Little Gym in Long Meadow Shopping Center in Hagerstown. The Little Gym is a health club franchise that specializes in noncompetitive exercise for those 12 and younger. The purpose of the gym, the owners say, is to encourage children to maintain active lifestyles at an early age. The exercise opportunities appeal to parents who see scary statistics about childhood obesity.

Childhood obesity is growing at an alarming rate and has tripled in the last 30 years. One in six school-aged children is now overweight, according to Shirley Perryman, Cooperative Extension Specialist with Colorado State University. Oddly, not all parents recognize the problem in their own families. Nine out of 10 parents polled by Consumer Reports this past June said they accepted that childhood obesity is a problem in the United States. But when asked about their own child, 50 percent of parents with overweight kids failed to recognize the problem.

janeth@herald-mail.com HAGERSTOWN - Thanks to the generosity of local Bon-Ton customers, the company donated 75 plush bears through its Bears That Care program to Washington County Hospital. The Herald Bears, an exclusive bear made by Ty Inc., maker of Beanie Babies, have soft white fur with white glittered wings. During the 2004 holiday season, Bon-Ton sold an exclusive Beanie Baby named Star. The proceeds went to Bears That Care, an ongoing program that supports distribution of bears to pediatric patients and children in need.

The competitive events included everything from the 50-meter dash to the standing long jump. But it was the spirit of community and camaraderie that stood out Saturday at the 39th annual Boonsboro Sons of the American Legion's Junior Olympics for Washington County's fourth- and fifth-graders. About 500 students from 25 schools in the county took part in the event at Boonsboro High School, according to organizers. Richard Secrest, director of the event, said the event epitomizes the spirit of community.

Penn State Mont Alto's annual Pediatric and Community Health Fair is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 14. The fair features horses, parachutes, puppet shows, ambulances, fire trucks, and a fly-in by the Life Lion helicopter. Participants can also shake hands and take a picture with the Penn State Nittany Lion. The fair provides information on several topics including childhood obesity, anger management, bullying and abuse, nutrition, and more. Attendees will discover community health resources available to them and will be eligible to win raffle prizes.

Donoghue's actions disappointing but not surprising To the editor: I was disappointed but not surprised to see that champion of the working man, Democratic Del. John Donoghue, recently held a meeting to drum up support to raise gas prices in Maryland. In true Maryland Democratic Party style, he has arrogantly threatened to withhold funding from any group that opposes him. Yes, even with gas prices near historic highs, the Maryland Democrats see no problem with raising taxes.

The ballroom at Hagerstown Hotel & Convention Center buzzed Monday evening with hundreds of simultaneous conversations about issues as varied as school achievement gaps, financial exploitation of seniors, domestic violence and arts education. The room was the site of an open house-style event in which members of the community were invited to explore a new Strategic Community Impact Plan that lays out 44 goals for improving the quality of life in Washington County. The project was initiated by United Way of Washington County and the Community Foundation of Washington County, and was carried out by more than 200 volunteers working in 11 focus groups.

U.S. Rep Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., tried to put things in perspective Sunday regarding the push for Americans to get more active. “I couldn't imagine when I was a kid growing up during the Depression that you would need to run to get exercise. We had enough exercise to keep food on the table, didn't we?” Bartlett said. The quote from Bartlett - emailed to The Herald-Mail Co. by a Review and Herald Publishing Association official - came as 132 people gathered Sunday for a 5K run and walk on the grounds of the publishing operation.

There's a new bad guy in the universe and it's up to kids to defeat him. His name is Master Sweet Treat - the czar of extra calories. Forget whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Master Sweet Treat has declared war on good nutrition and has taken over the five food-group worlds. Now, it's the job of brave elementary school students to save each world and defeat the czar of extra calories. All it takes is a complete and balanced diet. With childhood obesity rates tripling in the last 15 years, a team of college students is doing something about it. They've designed a computer game.

Four students in the Simulation and Digital Entertainment program at Hagerstown Community College worked with Washington County Public Schools staff and students in the Computer Game Development and Animation Program at Washington County Technical High School to create, design and develop an educational computer game for elementary school students in grades one through five. The project was part of the $339,602 USDA Culinary Enhancement of Food grant, which was awarded to the Maryland State Department of Education in 2009.

It's elementary. Healthy lifestyle choices should begin in childhood. But parents are busy. Fast food is cheap. And technology helps keep children sedentary. As a result, one out of three children in the United States is overweight or obese, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. They are at risk for developing serious health problems, such as Type 2 diabetes, that will carry over into adulthood. That's why Becki Weir believes it's important to promote healthy lifestyle choices as early as possible.

It's a mantra repeated throughout most people's childhood: Clean your plate. After all, how can you possibly waste food, you are told, when children are starving in Africa? It's a bit of gentle coaxing used by well-meaning parents who want to insure that their children are getting the right nutrition. But sometimes such comments can have unintended consequences. For instance, a recent study by Cornell University found that preschoolers whose parents regularly made them eat everything on their dinner plate later asked for bigger portions of sweet cereal at snack time.

Editor's note: This continues our occasional feature on fighting childhood obesity. Maybe your mom wasn't June Cleaver, sporting an apron and pearls. And Dad didn't wear a tie. But the chances are pretty good that you sat down almost every night to a family meal. Food appeared hot out of the oven and everyone was given a chore - setting the table, serving, washing the dishes. There also was proper etiquette and shared conversation. Today, for many people, such a scene is a quaint luxury.